LG V30: A case of bad timing?

If you're a regular reader, you know very well how the LG V30 won me over. I think the South Korean phablet is really an excellent product: beautiful on the design side, it offers excellent performance and does not give up on the FullView display. However, LG made a fatal misstep: it waited too long to release it on the market.

A good product is not always enough

As I have already explained in this article, there are several reasons why it is worthwhile to buy the V30. The slim metallic unibody gives pleasant light effects on the body, while at the front it leaves room for a large 6-inch display. Ergonomic and durable, it doesn't give up the headphone jack and features a fast fingerprint reader on the body.

But appearance is not everything. On the hardware side, the V30 also gives gamers excellent performance: titles like Riptide GP: Renegade and Asphalt 8 are not a problem. In everyday use, the Snapdragon 835 is able to handle multitasking and demanding tasks, and the camera also delivers good results. If you prefer to use manual mode you can get even more out of it and the wide-angle lens will surprise you during your holidays or your trips outdoors.

Carpe diem LG

Announced during the Berlin IFA in early September, the V30 arrived at the end of September on the South Korean market and mid-October in the United States. Only now is the phablet available in Europe. The late launch of the V30 did not therefore make a positive contribution to the brand's financial results: profits for the third quarter of 2017 were 82% higher than in the previous year, but the growth related to the sale of household appliances and television sets. The mobile division maintains the status quo: The G6 and Q6 have not made as big an impression as hoped.

Opinion by Jessica Murgia

The Huawei Mate 10 Pro will make life harder at the V30

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The V30 costs around $800 in the US, depending on the carrier. On the price there is not so much to say: about as high as other flagships but cheaper than the Note 8 and iPhone 8 Plus. Competition is ruthless and if the V30 had first arrived on the market, perhaps it could have made a difference. Now the challenge is even harder, especially if you consider the new Huawei Mate 10 Pro, presented in October and already on the market, at a price of around $840.

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Timing makes a difference (for some)

Before the IFA, when it was rumored that the V-Series was coming to Europe, I thought LG seemed to be lagging behind its competitors. Releasing the V20 in 2016 would have helped the brand, especially considering the smoking Note 7. Better late than never, so they say. And having the V30 in 2017 is a real pleasure because, as mentioned above, it is an excellent device able to meet the needs of many users: phablet lovers, gamers, those who are looking for a flagship of the latest generation, and those who love high quality photos and videos.

It's true that getting in there first is not always a sure-fire strategy. For example, the iPhone X integrates several interesting technologies already seen on Android for some time but, despite coming later, it managed to win over its fans.

But Apple's strategy does not apply to other brands like LG, for example. On the contrary, quite the opposite: if the V30 had arrived on the market as the Galaxy S30 or iPhone 30 it would probably would have made a killing. Unfortunately, the quality of a device, the work done by the brand and sometimes a slightly lower price than the competition are not enough to dominate the market. Marketing strategy, herd mentality and popular trends play a key role that cannot be overlooked.

Is there still time for the V30?

The V30 arrives on the market before Christmas and in the last quarter of 2017 there is still everything to play for. If the price of the phablet will decrease significantly as it did for the G6, more users will probably consider buying it. In short, even the V30 still has time to be appreciated and contribute to the revenues of the brand's mobile division, which with the G6 has not achieved the desired results.

Opinion by Jessica Murgia

LG should have released the V30 sooner.

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Frankly, it is a pity that good devices such as the V30 are not successful enough. But this is the hard rule of a smartphone market, a market where Apple, Samsung and Huawei are currently the masters. A market where underdogs like Xiaomi also tries to make their mark, while other big brand names in the history of mobile phones, such as HTC and Sony, are struggling to stay afloat.

5 comments

I went for the S8 because I was expecting the LG6 to be same specs, unfortunately it wasn't, I loved the LG V30 when it was released and I would of gotten one over the S8 so it's a shame. It was very poor timing for the V30 and the fact it will take so long for everywhere to get it, I went into a few phone shops in the UK and surprisingly I only found one Car Phone Warehouse shop that had it on the shelf, the others didn't, they were plugging in the iPhone X, Pixel 2 and XL and still plugging Samsung Galaxy S8 and + over the LG, really hope LG can time their next release better.

The V30 is a great phone. I’ve had mine for about a month. I never owned an LG. Apple, Samsung and HTC over the past 10 years. The V30 is clearly a new high for LG. The press is hurting this phone by giving it backhanded compliments like “Great phone with a bad screen” which is another way of saying don’t buy this. I didn’t listen to those reviews and I’m so glad I didn’t. First, the display is so beautiful and second, everything else is great. Seriously, after maybe 20 smartphones including the iPhone X the V30 is maybe the best I’ve had.

That being said, ultimately if they continue to hit it out of the park and the reviewers are more objective (recently the reviews of the V30 have been getting much better like the review in androidpit! and today’s article in Forbes) people will buy LG phones in ever growing numbers. Clearly they have the product. Now they need to improve timing and marketing. The hardest part is making a phone this good.

I said that many times LG ruins the success of their phones by the way they launch then. They did it with all the V series. If you want to know how not to launch a phone ask LG for advice. Here in the Philippines it is even worse I asked at the LG store when looking at the V20 when the V30 would be here, I was told January or February 5 months after launch. I mean really LG WTF!!! In my onion they are great phones with bad execution in launch and in execution in the case of the G5. Which could have been a home run knocked out of the park if they had though about it a little more about the looks and finish.